Visualizing designer quantum states in stable macrocycle quantum corrals
Xinnan Peng, Harshitra Mahalingam, Shaoqiang Dong, Pingo Mutombo, Jie Su, Mykola Telychko, Shaotang Song, Pin Lyu, Pei Wen Ng, Jishan Wu, Pavel Jelı́nek, Chunyan Chi, Aleksandr Rodin, Jiong Lu
Abstract
Creating atomically precise quantum architectures with high digital fidelity and desired quantum states is an important goal in a new era of quantum technology. The strategy of creating these quantum nanostructures mainly relies on atom-by-atom, molecule-by-molecule manipulation or molecular assembly through non-covalent interactions, which thus lack sufficient chemical robustness required for on-chip quantum device operation at elevated temperature. Here, we report a bottom-up synthesis of covalently linked organic quantum corrals (OQCs) with atomic precision to induce the formation of topology-controlled quantum resonance states, arising from a collective interference of scattered electron waves inside the quantum nanocavities. Individual OQCs host a series of atomic orbital-like resonance states whose orbital hybridization into artificial homo-diatomic and hetero-diatomic molecular-like resonance states can be constructed in Cassini oval-shaped OQCs with desired topologies corroborated by joint ab initio and analytic calculations. Our studies open up a new avenue to fabricate covalently linked large-sized OQCs with atomic precision to engineer desired quantum states with high chemical robustness and digital fidelity for future practical applications.